Petition helps spur singers to back off Scout concert

Mar. 6, 2013
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Derek Nance, an Eagle Scout and former Boy Scout camp leader, uploaded a now-viral video on YouTube announcing that he is gay and started an online petition against the Boy Scouts' anti-gay policy. / Derek Nance

Derek Nance, who uploaded a now-viral video on YouTube announcing he is gay, urged music acts Carly Rae Jepsen and Train to cancel their performances through an online petition at Change.org.

As of midday Wednesday, his petition had received more than 70,000 digital signatures asking the artists to cancel their performances because of a Boy Scout policy that forbids openly gay boys or adults from participating in the organization.

More than 1.6 million people have signed 140 petitions at Change.org decrying the Boy Scout anti-gay policy. That policy is now under internal review with a potential decision set for May.

Train, whose hits include Hey, Soul Sister and Drops of Jupiter (Tell Me), posted a statement on the band's website that said they were not aware of the Boy Scouts' anti-gay policy when they booked the show at the Jamboree, which is expected to attract about 50,000 people this year. Jepsen, known for her hits Call Me Maybe and This Kiss, tweeted Tuesday that she would not be participating.

Both acts have taken the Jamboree dates off their scheduled tours.

The artists made their announcements earlier, which included Jepsen posting on Twitter, "As an artist who believes in equality for all people, I will not be participating in the Boy Scouts of America Jamboree this summer â?¦"

"Train strongly opposes any kind of policy that questions the equality of any American citizen," the band said in a statement. "We have always seen the BSA as a great and noble organization. We look forward to participating in the Jamboree this summer, as long as they make the right decision before then."

Deron Smith, publicity director for the Boy Scouts, said the show will go on at this year's July 15-24 Jamboree in West Virginia.

"We appreciate everyone's right to express an opinion and remain focused on delivering a great Jamboree program for our Scouts," Smith wrote in e-mail.

In an interview Tuesday, Nance said he wasn't expecting the national attention when he uploaded his video in January, which led to media organizations such as the Huffington Post and ABC News covering his story.

Today, he said he's happy to be pushing for change at the Boy Scouts with the online petition, which included help from the Scouts for Equality and the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation.

"They kind of put the bug in my ear," said Nance, now a masters student at the University of Nevada, Reno.

"Carly Rae Jepsen and Train's decisions not only send the right message to the BSA, but remind LGBT young people that they are supported and accepted," Rich Ferraro, GLAAD's vice president of communications, said in a statement.

Nance, who earned his Eagle Scout status in Las Vegas, spent many summers working at a Boy Scout camp in San Diego, which included serving in a leadership role there. He had wanted to tell his friends at camp about his sexuality .

"I had been planning to do that for years in my head," he said.

As for the Boy Scout policy against gays, Nance said he's hopeful for change.